Lemon Chicken With Radishes and Peas
Updated May 4, 2026
Andrew Bui for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.
- Ready In
- 55 min
- Rating
- Comments
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Ingredients
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1 small preserved lemon, halved, seeds removed, then peel and flesh finely chopped (about 3 tablespoons), or 1 fresh lemon (see Tip)
2 ½ to 3 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (or preferred chicken parts)
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
Salt
1 bunch trimmed radishes (about 10 ounces), large ones quartered and small ones halved
2 cups fresh peas or 1 (10-ounce) package frozen peas (no need to thaw)
2 tablespoons packed cilantro or parsley leaves, torn or chopped, for serving
Preparation
- Step 1
Heat the oven to 425 degrees. In a large bowl, use a fork to mash together the butter and preserved lemon. (It’s OK if the butter and lemon aren’t fully incorporated.)
- Step 2
Place the chicken on a large sheet pan. Rub all over with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and season with salt. Scoop out two thirds of the butter; use your index finger to gently pry the skin apart from the flesh of each thigh and place some butter and any stray lemon pieces under the skin, then smush some on top of each chicken piece.
- Step 3
Transfer the chicken to the oven to roast for 25 minutes.
- Step 4
Meanwhile, in the bowl with the remaining butter, mix together the radishes, peas and remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil. Season with salt.
- Step 5
Once the chicken has roasted for 25 minutes, add the radish mixture to the sheet pan surrounding the chicken and cook until the chicken is cooked through, the skin golden and the radishes a soft pink color, about 15 minutes more. Top with the herbs and serve.
To use a fresh lemon rather than preserved lemon, zest 1 lemon into the butter in Step 1. Halve the lemon, then slice off the peel (including the white pith) of one lemon half, revealing the flesh. Finely chop the peel, adding it to the butter. Chop the flesh, discarding any seeds, and add it to the peas and radishes in Step 4. Reserve the remaining lemon half to squeeze over the finished dish in Step 6.
Private Notes
Comments
I do a lot of sheetpan cooking, including with peas. Peas at 425 degrees for 15 minutes is too much. Indeed, the picture above shows them semi-nuked. My preference would be to cook the peas for less time (and probably a slightly lesser temperature). Also subbing quartered potatoes for the raddishes is nice. The mixture of the peas, potatoes and smaltz from the rendered chicken fat is what makes the sheetpan approach a homerun, in my view. Also: use wax paper!
@Chris use parchment paper.
Love roasted radishes, but I've never understood roasting or cooking peas beyond keeping them firm. Shepherd's pie with peas baked in it? No no no. Add them on the side. Mushy peas are gross no matter what method you use to overcook them. Otherwise - this looks good!
This dish was just okay. It lacked the lemony flavor I expected, but that could be because the directions were too obtuse for the cooks in my house to believe that both the lemon peel and the fruit are finely chopped and used. It also has way more butter than needed. Consider halving the fat in the recipe and use both the flesh and the peel of the preserved lemon, both finely diced.
I don’t understand these instructions: “small preserved lemon, halved, seeds removed, then peel and flesh finely chopped (about 3 tablespoons). The peel is the star of preserved lemons. Why in earth would you throw it away?
Which is why the peel is finely chopped and added to the dish
Agreed. I threw away the peel because the instructions don't say to include it, which meant I didn't get 3T out of one lemon but had to use additional lemons instead. (Also, for anyone who says otherwise, the other person in the kitchen with me also read that it was just the fruit and not the skin that was used in the dish.) Anyone cooking this dish should include the finely chopped lemon skin.
Loved this dish! Used fresh peas and added a few small fingerling potatoes cut up in matching sizes to the radishes. I found the dish springy and fresh with crispy chicken skin. Another poster was totally correct: the schmaltzy veggies cooked in that chicken fat are delish. Definitely will be making this again!